Caledon Hills Section - Chinguacousy Rd (2.8 km) to Willoughby Rd (15.9 km)- May 2, 2024.
Hiking With Friends was hoping for a decent spring hike to start the month of May, and it turned out this 13.1 km route near the beginning of the Caledon Hills Section suited us...to a T...sure the amended route, due to ongoing construction on Dominion Street in downtown Brimstone, means that the challenging Devil's Pulpit area and the notable "Forks of the Credit" are only accessible temporarily as a Side Trail adventure...but sometimes it's not just what you see, but the conditions under which you see it, that makes a hike a special shared experience...
"The best four hours of my day", as one hiker described it (me)...not a complicated route, involving a unique "lollipop" re-route portion that treats one to a good section of the park...a decent amount of road walking and a healthy 400 meters of climbing means it's not just the emerging spring beauty that leaves us breathless...
The scene at the top of Chingaucousy Road is a busy one and our group photo in bright morning sunshine tells you why...21 hikers have shown up to spend some time together on the Bruce Trail!..that's one hiker per every 600 meters of our route!..collectively, we will hike over 275 kilometers today!..if these meaningless statistics fail to impress you, then perhaps you should know that the sum of our ages is...oh, my calculator just broke...
There's myself, Peter, Geoff, Annette, Lesley, Barbara, Nancy, Catherine, Ron J, Frank, Liz, Steve R, Rita, Andrew, Frances, Steve K, Sandra, Doug (H.C), Andrea, Grace, and Marleen...and it's time to get on the move...
If snakes are present, can ladders be far behind?..if they enjoy the feel of warm mud on their scaly skin, then they have come to the right area...the trail in this initial section is really slippery!
Eventually the trail becomes firmer, and wider, and, after a short regroup, the pace becomes more sprightly in the warming sunshine...
There's a short hill to climb that meets The Grange Side Road and the spot where, prior to the re-route, we would have headed west towards the Devil's Pulpit and then continued on to the Forks of the Credit near Brimstone...that way now designated a side trail, Professor Doug, H.C, instructs the group on how will shall proceed...we are certain that it is a plan that will take us to our destiny...or possibly Milton...
It was around this point in the day that one hiker (me), decided we were in the midst of a blooming spring morning that heralded the start of a great season for travelling the Bruce Trail...blue skies mixed with flowering trees and shrubs, enjoyed with a soft, warm breeze and lots of excited conversation...the kilometers slip by...
After crossing the tracks of the former Orangeville-Brampton Railway (abandoned in 2021), there's the curved staircase that leads down to the Credit River...descending as if from heaven...last October, on a grey fall day when we had to go up, it looked like this...
...different day, different perspective...
An impromptu bridge picture at the Credit River crossing on McLaren Road...having seen the Bow River in Calgary last week reduced to a trickle due to continued drought, we may reflect on our wet winter/spring, while having been a tad dreary, as now providing the lifeblood to the emerging green landscape around us...
The walk north on McLaren Road is brisk and pleasant...there's lots of catching up to do with several hikers having traveled recently, and being able to hike abreast is never unwelcome with a large group like today...as the sign above indicates, the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park is just a few kilometers away...the anticipation is knife-edged...
Our arrival at the left turn onto Puckering Lane signals the start of the "lollipop trail" that will ultimately lead us back to this point...I'm pretty sure this is a unique feature on the Bruce at present but it does mean that end to end types get to experience the park while the re-route is in effect...so we'll give it a lick...
A wall of hikers behind which is a hand built stone wall that some of us got to see being constructed here in October 2020...we admire it so much that we thought we would hide it from your view...
Following blaze protocol, we opt for the northern fork as we are travelling north on the main trail...not sure what the consequences of going "Midnight Express" against the prescribed flow would be, but we didn't stop to hash it out...the descent into the river valley was the most technical of the day, and the forest was quite beautiful in the dappled sunlight...
The trail here co-joins the park's Dominion Trail and we know that one of our favorite and familiar rest spots is not far away, on the banks of the rushing river...if there was any doubt as to what province we were hiking in (I'd like to think that we kinda know where we are...usually), our provincial flower begins to appear in spectacular bloom...
We have been blessed with some great moments here...today certainly added to that list...ideal conditions and a refreshing respite...
It's definitely a day to savor...no need to rush off back to the real world that can get so tiring...
Eventually the trail beckons, as it always does, and we head up out of the valley...some good cardio work out here!..
A trillium trilliums provide a nice distraction from the grueling climb...
Having completed the loop in a clockwise direction, we return to Puckering Lane and head back down the "stick" of the lollipop...
After crossing McLaren Road, there's just a (very pretty) stretch of forest to cover before we are done for the day...and one last decent incline...
It's Willoughby Road, and the end of our route!..
Well that was time well spent!..Hiking With Friends out in full force on a wonderful Spring day...a great hike to start off the season of re-birth...thanks for joining us!...see you again soon.
The End
Excerpt from the Blue Mountains Section Club newsletter...O Captain, My Captain!..
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